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Students take part in a climate rally in Parliament Square on May 24, 2019 in London. (Photo: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
Organizers of upcoming global climate strikes hope their demands for a rapid end to business as usual and a swift start to climate justice will be too loud to ignore.
The strikes, which are set for September 20th and 27th--with additional actions slated for the days in between--are planned in over 150 countries thus far, and over 6,000 people have already pledged to take part.
It has the potential to be the biggest climate mobilization yet, said organizers.
"Our house is on fire--let's act like it," says the strikes' call-to-action, referencing the words of Swedish activist Greta Thunberg. "We demand climate justice for everyone."
Thunberg echoed that call in a just-released video promoting the upcoming actions.
"Everyone should mobilize for the 20th and 27th of September," said Thunberg, "because this is a global issue which actually affects everyone."
It's been the world's youth, though, that have played a driving force in recently calling attention to the climate crisis with protests and school strikes.
"Young people have been leading here," 350.org co-founder Bill McKibben said in the Thunberg video, "but now it's the job of the rest of us to back them up."
The two Fridays of action, according to organizers, will bookend a "Week for Future" to sustain the climate call. Nestled between is the United Nations Summit on Climate Change on September 23rd in New York.
"Because we don't have a single year to lose," said Luisa Neubauer of Fridays for Future Germany in a press statement Wednesday, "we're going to make this week a turning point in history."
The upcoming protests reflect a call form a diverse group of global organizations, including Amnesty International, Oxfam, La Via Campesina, Fridays for Future, and Extinction Rebellion.
The Youth Climate Strike Coalition, which includes Sunrise Movement and Zero Hour, issued a press statement Wednesday focusing on U.S. actions on September 20th.
"The youth uprising," said 350.org North America director Tamara Toles O'Laughlin, "is backed by millions who refuse to sit by while the Trump administration, hand-in-hand with fossil fuel executives, continues their campaign of climate denial and policy rollbacks, all while we face extreme heat waves, hurricanes, floods, and wildfires."
"We stand with communities demanding economic transformation that works for our collective right to a sustainable, healthy, and livable future," she continued.
Backing up the need for the mobilization is ample evidence of the climate crisis. As the Global Climate Strike website sums up:
The inter-generational and global actions, according to the global organizers, can serve to show the size of chorus of those demanding and en to the fossil fuel economy, bring out those previous on the sidelines of the climate justice fight, and "kickstart a huge wave of action and renewed ambition all over the world."
To make that happen, massive turnout is necessary, said Evan Cholerton of Earth Strike International.
"Multinational corporations aren't going to give up anything unless we fight," he said.
"This is a fight for ourselves, for our future, and for future generations," continued Cholerton. "This is a fight for justice for all: workers, students, parents, teachers, conservatives, liberals, socialists, and everyone else. We can fight against climate breakdown, and we can fight against environmental destruction. We need to all be part of this, or else the establishment won't budge."
"We can do this," he added, "if we do this together."
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Organizers of upcoming global climate strikes hope their demands for a rapid end to business as usual and a swift start to climate justice will be too loud to ignore.
The strikes, which are set for September 20th and 27th--with additional actions slated for the days in between--are planned in over 150 countries thus far, and over 6,000 people have already pledged to take part.
It has the potential to be the biggest climate mobilization yet, said organizers.
"Our house is on fire--let's act like it," says the strikes' call-to-action, referencing the words of Swedish activist Greta Thunberg. "We demand climate justice for everyone."
Thunberg echoed that call in a just-released video promoting the upcoming actions.
"Everyone should mobilize for the 20th and 27th of September," said Thunberg, "because this is a global issue which actually affects everyone."
It's been the world's youth, though, that have played a driving force in recently calling attention to the climate crisis with protests and school strikes.
"Young people have been leading here," 350.org co-founder Bill McKibben said in the Thunberg video, "but now it's the job of the rest of us to back them up."
The two Fridays of action, according to organizers, will bookend a "Week for Future" to sustain the climate call. Nestled between is the United Nations Summit on Climate Change on September 23rd in New York.
"Because we don't have a single year to lose," said Luisa Neubauer of Fridays for Future Germany in a press statement Wednesday, "we're going to make this week a turning point in history."
The upcoming protests reflect a call form a diverse group of global organizations, including Amnesty International, Oxfam, La Via Campesina, Fridays for Future, and Extinction Rebellion.
The Youth Climate Strike Coalition, which includes Sunrise Movement and Zero Hour, issued a press statement Wednesday focusing on U.S. actions on September 20th.
"The youth uprising," said 350.org North America director Tamara Toles O'Laughlin, "is backed by millions who refuse to sit by while the Trump administration, hand-in-hand with fossil fuel executives, continues their campaign of climate denial and policy rollbacks, all while we face extreme heat waves, hurricanes, floods, and wildfires."
"We stand with communities demanding economic transformation that works for our collective right to a sustainable, healthy, and livable future," she continued.
Backing up the need for the mobilization is ample evidence of the climate crisis. As the Global Climate Strike website sums up:
The inter-generational and global actions, according to the global organizers, can serve to show the size of chorus of those demanding and en to the fossil fuel economy, bring out those previous on the sidelines of the climate justice fight, and "kickstart a huge wave of action and renewed ambition all over the world."
To make that happen, massive turnout is necessary, said Evan Cholerton of Earth Strike International.
"Multinational corporations aren't going to give up anything unless we fight," he said.
"This is a fight for ourselves, for our future, and for future generations," continued Cholerton. "This is a fight for justice for all: workers, students, parents, teachers, conservatives, liberals, socialists, and everyone else. We can fight against climate breakdown, and we can fight against environmental destruction. We need to all be part of this, or else the establishment won't budge."
"We can do this," he added, "if we do this together."
Organizers of upcoming global climate strikes hope their demands for a rapid end to business as usual and a swift start to climate justice will be too loud to ignore.
The strikes, which are set for September 20th and 27th--with additional actions slated for the days in between--are planned in over 150 countries thus far, and over 6,000 people have already pledged to take part.
It has the potential to be the biggest climate mobilization yet, said organizers.
"Our house is on fire--let's act like it," says the strikes' call-to-action, referencing the words of Swedish activist Greta Thunberg. "We demand climate justice for everyone."
Thunberg echoed that call in a just-released video promoting the upcoming actions.
"Everyone should mobilize for the 20th and 27th of September," said Thunberg, "because this is a global issue which actually affects everyone."
It's been the world's youth, though, that have played a driving force in recently calling attention to the climate crisis with protests and school strikes.
"Young people have been leading here," 350.org co-founder Bill McKibben said in the Thunberg video, "but now it's the job of the rest of us to back them up."
The two Fridays of action, according to organizers, will bookend a "Week for Future" to sustain the climate call. Nestled between is the United Nations Summit on Climate Change on September 23rd in New York.
"Because we don't have a single year to lose," said Luisa Neubauer of Fridays for Future Germany in a press statement Wednesday, "we're going to make this week a turning point in history."
The upcoming protests reflect a call form a diverse group of global organizations, including Amnesty International, Oxfam, La Via Campesina, Fridays for Future, and Extinction Rebellion.
The Youth Climate Strike Coalition, which includes Sunrise Movement and Zero Hour, issued a press statement Wednesday focusing on U.S. actions on September 20th.
"The youth uprising," said 350.org North America director Tamara Toles O'Laughlin, "is backed by millions who refuse to sit by while the Trump administration, hand-in-hand with fossil fuel executives, continues their campaign of climate denial and policy rollbacks, all while we face extreme heat waves, hurricanes, floods, and wildfires."
"We stand with communities demanding economic transformation that works for our collective right to a sustainable, healthy, and livable future," she continued.
Backing up the need for the mobilization is ample evidence of the climate crisis. As the Global Climate Strike website sums up:
The inter-generational and global actions, according to the global organizers, can serve to show the size of chorus of those demanding and en to the fossil fuel economy, bring out those previous on the sidelines of the climate justice fight, and "kickstart a huge wave of action and renewed ambition all over the world."
To make that happen, massive turnout is necessary, said Evan Cholerton of Earth Strike International.
"Multinational corporations aren't going to give up anything unless we fight," he said.
"This is a fight for ourselves, for our future, and for future generations," continued Cholerton. "This is a fight for justice for all: workers, students, parents, teachers, conservatives, liberals, socialists, and everyone else. We can fight against climate breakdown, and we can fight against environmental destruction. We need to all be part of this, or else the establishment won't budge."
"We can do this," he added, "if we do this together."